Pope Francis invited to Kazakhstan

Astana, December 10, Interfax - Kazakhstan President Nursultan Nazarbayev has invited Pope Francis to visit the Expo world specialized exhibition in Astana in 2017.

Expo 2017 commissioner Rapil Zhoshybayev, who is Kazakh first deputy foreign minister, handed a letter of invitation for Francis to Cardinal Secretary of State Pietro Parolin, the Vatican foreign minister, the Kazakh Foreign Ministry said in a statement on Wednesday.

Parolin in response suggested organizing an exhibition of Leonardo da Vinci's Codex Atlanticus as part of Expo 2017.

It was assured that the Vatican would be amply represented at a planned congress in Astana of religious leaders. Such congresses have become unique and influential floors for dialogue between religions and civilizations, the Kazakh ministry said.

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